Students Planting Green Belt in Honor of Wangari Maathai

Meredith College students are helping prepare the College’s own Green Belt in honor of Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai’s visit to campus on October 1.

The Green Belt Movement Maathai established has helped to restore Kenya’s indigenous forests and involved women in sustainable agriculture. She is internationally recognized for her persistent struggle for democracy, human rights and environmental conservation. She and the Green Belt Movement have received numerous awards, most notably the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize.

Meredith’s Green Belt will honor of Maathai’s life work and commemorate her visit.

Each student enrolled in First Year Experience will have the opportunity to plant a tree, arranged on campus in arboretum-style and botanically interesting groupings, resulting in the planting of over 350 trees. Planting began September 21

The project is “a wonderful opportunity that allows you to make a direct contribution to the environment,” said Kayley Hake, ’12, an FYE student assistant who participated in planting the green belt.

“It is great to do this at Meredith because as we progress through college, we can watch our tree grow,” Hake added.

The trees included in the Green Belt are surrounding the greenway walking trail that crosses the front and western edge of Meredith’s campus. The new trees, which are supplementing those planted earlier by the Grounds Department, are being planted in groupings designed to be attractive, interesting and educational. Including different types of the same tree species in the Green Belt is a way to show the contrasts between them.

The Meredith Green Belt tree planting was a partnership of the Office for First Year Experience, The Office of Student Leadership and Service, the Sustainability Office, and the Grounds Department of Facilities Services.